Just saw that Steve Addazio is taking over at BC. I like that fit for them. Thought he did some good things with less than stellar talent at Temple in the past. Will likely bring that Florida spread attack to the ACC, and it'll be interesting to see if he can recruit some premium athletes to run it. If so, BC could be a team to reckon with down the road in football.

But I want to say that at what point are these coaches going to get held accountable for jumping from school to school? Shouldn't they be held to the same responsibility/commitment that they insist upon with the students/players they recruit?

Isn't there some way we can govern this? Put some sort of clause/rule that states if you take a job somewhere, you have to stay at least three years. You can still "get out" of a contract before that if you're coach, but there's some sort of penalty for when you do such as you get $0 and there's like a 30-60 day penalty before you can begin working for the new school? Basically penalizing in the recruiting wars as a way to prevent coaches from being so incentivized to not honor the deals they signed?...

Can a couple of conferences get together in order to collude to do this?

MADISON, Wis. -- Cross Pitt coach and former Wisconsin offensive coordinator Paul Chryst off the list of candidates for the Badgers job.

Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez says Chryst is "going to stay at Pitt." Alvarez says he helped Chryst get the job at Pitt last year, and doesn't think it would be appropriate to hire him away after such a short time.

Chryst is from Madison and remains a popular figure at Wisconsin, and was considered the favorite to replace Bret Bielema.

Chryst released a statement Tuesday night saying he was committed to Pitt, and Alvarez says it wouldn't be right for him to leave after just one year. The Panthers are 6-6 and will play Mississippi in the BBVA Compass Bowl.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Louisville coach Charlie Strong will receive a new eight-year contract through 2020 after turning down an offer from Tennessee, sources told ESPN.

"I knew this would be a big opportunity," Strong said during a press conference at the Cardinals' football stadium. "It was the best decision to stay here, continue to build a program and fulfill our dreams on the football field and in the classroom."

Louisville athletic director Tom Jurich said Strong didn't use the Tennessee offer as leverage for a new deal and that they only began taking about it an hour before Thursday's news conference.

The No. 22 Cardinals (10-2) won a share of the Big East Conference championship and a BCS berth in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, where they'll face Florida.

Strong's name had surfaced for openings at Tennessee and Auburn in the past week. The Tennessee offer was worth $3.5 million annually, sources said.

"They made an offer and I said I'd think about it and talk about it with my family," he said about the Tennessee offer that came Tuesday.

After failing to make a deal with Strong, Mike Gundy and Larry Fedora, Tennessee is now considering Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart and Cincinnati coach Butch Jones, among others, a source said Thursday.

Speculation linking Strong to the Auburn job triggered a denial as he prepared the Cardinals for their title-deciding game at Rutgers last Thursday.

Auburn hired former Arkansas State coach Gus Malzahn on Tuesday, a day after Strong was mentioned as Tennessee's top target. On Monday, Strong held a bizarre news conference in which he managed to stir up more speculation about his future.

He also criticized the Cardinals' fan base for their attendance at football games.

[+] EnlargeStrongAP Photo/Keith SrakocicCharlie Strong will remain coach at Louisville after turning down an offer from Tennessee.

Strong, 52, came to Louisville after serving as defensive coordinator under Urban Meyer on Florida's 2006 and 2008 national championship teams. He has had four coaching stints with the Gators between 1983 and 2009 with other stops at Texas A&M, Southern Illinois, Ole Miss, Notre Dame and South Carolina.

Though coaching Tennessee would have helped Strong realize a dream of coaching in the SEC, he decided to stay at the school that gave him his first head coaching job. Strong is 24-14 in three seasons at Louisville.

"You look at those jobs, but I have a great job here," Strong said. "I have a great person that I work for, and I think that's what it comes down to. When you talk to an athletic director it's more about not only your job, but it's about your family and caring about your family. When they ask about your daughters, that's when you know they care more about you as a person."

All along, Louisville Jurich expressed confidence in keeping Strong. He vowed to beat any offer made to his coach. He gave Strong a seven-year contract last year that paid him $2.3 million per season.

Strong will carry the Cardinals into their move to the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2014. Last week's move from the Big East to the ACC was considered a major factor in his decision to remain with the program.

Information from ESPN.com's Joe Schad and The Associated Press was used in this report.

BERKELEY, Calif. -- At the urging of athletic director Sandy Barbour, Sonny Dykes pulled out a white California cap from underneath the lectern and popped it on his head to accent his blue-and-gold tie and dark suit, drawing cheers from department staff who filled the Memorial Stadium room.

On his first day as Cal's coach, Dykes definitely looked the part. The Golden Bears just hope he can garner the same reaction on game days.

Cal formally introduced Dykes as its football coach Thursday, replacing the fired Jeff Tedford after three years at Louisiana Tech. Dykes takes over a proud program with a refurbished stadium and training facilities, but also one that has failed to make a bowl in two of the past three seasons and has the lowest graduation rate (48 percent) in the Pac-12 Conference.

"We will turn it around," Dykes said. "It's going to be a long, arduous process. How many years is it going to take? I don't know. Is it going to be next year? I don't know. What's the future hold? I can't answer that question. But I do know that's what's going to drive us every day. Every single day we get in our car and come to work, our goal is going to be to get to the Rose Bowl."

The decision to hire Dykes was easily the biggest one Barbour has made in her eight-year tenure.

Barbour said she interviewed between six and 12 candidates. She said the school and Dykes have agreed to a "term sheet," but she will not release the contract details until it's officially signed by all parties, which Barbour expects to happen in the coming days.

Dykes also had been vetted by a search committee, and vice chancellor John Wilton said Dykes was the school's "first choice." Barbour and Wilton met with Dykes in New York on Monday in the final stage of the interview process.

"When he walked out of the room I said to myself, 'I think that's the guy,' " Barbour said.

More than anything, Barbour and the search committee cited Dykes' discipline and offensive ingenuity -- which has sorely lacked in Berkeley in recent seasons.

The 43-year-old Dykes had a 22-15 record with the Bulldogs, improving their victory total each year. The Bulldogs averaged 35.9 points and 452.5 yards per game in his tenure.

He takes over a Cal team that went 3-9 this past season and went 34-37 in Tedford's final 5½ years, leading to his dismissal. Dykes inherits a roster that has some talent, most notably heralded quarterback recruit Zach Kline, who did not play as a freshman but is in line to win the starting job next season.

The new coach also will benefit from a facilities upgrade that Tedford helped engineer. Cal opened its remodeled $321 million stadium this past season that is adjacent to a $150 million on-campus High Performance Center.

"There were a lot of good jobs that were open this year," said Dykes, adding that he interviewed for a "couple" others but declined to name specific vacancies. "This was the one I was interested in from day one."

Dykes, the son of former Texas Tech coach Spike Dykes, is known as an offensive mastermind who runs a spread system that he honed as coordinator under Mike Leach at Texas Tech. He later spent three seasons as offensive coordinator at Arizona under Mike Stoops before becoming head coach at Louisiana Tech ahead of the 2010 season. He also coached two years as an assistant at Kentucky.

Dykes coached one of the nation's most prolific offenses at Louisiana Tech this year with the Bulldogs leading the nation with 51.5 points per contest and ranking second with 577.9 yards per game. On the other side of the ball, the Bulldogs ranked last in the country in yards allowed (526.1) and 116th in points (38.5) per game.

Dykes said defensive coordinator will be "the most important hire I will make." He said he has four to five coaches in mind for the opening.

He plans to meet with Tedford's remaining assistants before deciding on any changes. Dykes said he hopes to fill out his a staff by Christmas with "old people, young people, optimistic people, pessimistic people."

"Old grouchy guys and young optimistic guys have a chance to work very well together," he said.

Dykes plans to stick around the Bay Area and start recruiting immediately, which he admitted the Bears are "behind on" as is usually the case during a coaching change. He held a brief morning meeting with players, who introduced themselves to him one at a time.

"It's pretty much back to basics," sophomore defensive back Avery Sebastian said.

Cal still owes Tedford $6.9 million over the final three years of his deal. Wilton, the school's vice chancellor, said the sides are still working on a settlement.

Once Dykes' deal is finalized, he hopes to concentrate on what he does best: coach. He said the past two days have been a whirlwind for him and his wife, Kate, and their two young daughters, Alta (nicknamed Ally) and Charlotte (whom they call Charlie).

"But I'll look back," he said, "and say that was the best 48 hours of my life."

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Butch Jones wasn't Tennessee's first choice as its next football coach. The Volunteers believe the former Cincinnati coach will prove he's the right choice.

Tennessee introduced Jones on Friday as its successor to Derek Dooley, who was fired Nov. 18 after going 15-21 in three seasons. Jones becomes the Volunteers' fourth coach in six seasons, ending a tumultuous couple of days for both parties. The new Vols coach said he was taking over "the best college football program in America."

[+] EnlargeButch JonesDavid Richard/AP PhotoTrying to regain its status as a national power, Tennessee hired Cincinnati's Butch Jones as its new coach Friday.

"We'll be working to be champions each and every day," Jones said. "We will be a champion in everything we do. That's not only on the field but off the field."

Jones, 44, has a 50-27 record in six seasons as a head coach. He went 27-13 in three seasons at Central Michigan and was 23-14 at Cincinnati the last three years. He now faces the task of rebuilding a former Southeastern Conference power that has posted three consecutive losing seasons.

Jones takes the job after declining an offer to become the new coach at Colorado. A six-year contract was finalized with the Volunteers early Friday, sources told ESPN, and Cincinnati said Jones had resigned his position with the Bearcats effective immediately.

Tennessee went after at least two other candidates before hiring Jones.

During the 19-day search to replace Dooley, the Volunteers contacted ESPN analyst and former Super Bowl-winning coach Jon Gruden, who indicated he wasn't interested. The Vols then pursued Charlie Strong, who said Thursday he had turned down their offer and would stay at Louisville.

"Rarely in life is anything exactly what it seems to be," Tennessee athletic director Dave Hart said. "Life doesn't throw us all fastballs. It throws us curves, and then you've got some screwballs. ... You've got to be able to adjust."

Jones, meanwhile, was apparently waiting for a job like Tennessee.

On the same day Strong made his announcement, Jones rejected an offer to take over Colorado's program. He also had been linked to the Purdue coaching job before withdrawing his name from consideration.

More on ESPN.com

Butch Jones became the latest coach to use his time at Cincinnati as a springboard to land a high-profile job, writes Andrea Adelson. Blog

• Recruiting: Tough job ahead Insider• Big East blog

Cincinnati athletic director Whit Babcock said Jones told him Thursday morning that he was rejecting Colorado's offer. Mere minutes later, Tennessee athletic director Dave Hart called Babcock to express his interest in contacting Jones. Babcock said he gave Jones 24 hours to make a decision on whether to stay or go, if Tennessee offered. Babcock said Jones notified him of his decision Friday at 5:15 a.m. and informed Cincinnati's players at a 7:30 a.m. team meeting.

"It's been kind of a whirlwind," Jones said.

Jones' hiring means each of the four Southeastern Conference teams that fired coaches this year has filled its vacancy.

Kentucky hired Florida State defensive coordinator Mark Stoops last week to replace Joker Phillips. Arkansas hired Bret Bielema away from Wisconsin on Tuesday to take over for John L. Smith. Auburn selected Arkansas State's Gus Malzahn on Tuesday as the replacement for Gene Chizik.

Jones will be Tennessee's fourth coach in a six-season stretch, not including offensive coordinator Jim Chaney's stint as interim head coach in the 2012 season finale after Dooley's dismissal. Phillip Fulmer was fired after the 2008 season, ending his career with a 152-52 record at Tennessee. Lane Kiffin coached Tennessee in 2009 before leaving for Southern California. Dooley lasted three years.

After winning at least eight games for 16 consecutive seasons from 1989-2004 and posting double-digit wins in nine of those years, Tennessee hasn't earned more than seven victories in any of its last five seasons. The Vols went 5-7 this fall for their fifth losing season over the last eight years. This also is the first time since 1909-11 that Tennessee has finished below .500 three years in a row.

SEC blog

SEC ESPN.com's Chris Low and Edward Aschoff write about all things SEC football in the conference blog.

More:• Blog network: College Football Nation

Hart said at the start of the search that head coaching experience was "critically important" and that he wanted a coach who "knows the difficulty of climbing the ladder in the SEC." Jones lacks SEC experience, but he has a career winning percentage of .649. Jones' teams have earned at least a share of a conference title in four of his six seasons as a head coach.

After replacing Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly at Central Michigan and then again at Cincinnati, Jones maintained the momentum his predecessor had established at each school.

In Jones' three-year stint at Central Michigan, the Chippewas won two Mid-American Conference championships and posted a combined league record of 22-3. Jones went 4-8 in his first year at Cincinnati, but the Bearcats are 19-6 since and have tied for first place in the Big East each of the last two seasons. Cincinnati's 2011 season included a 45-23 loss at Tennessee.

Jones signed a contract extension after the 2011 season that includes a $1.4 million buyout if he left before Jan. 1.

He becomes the third consecutive Cincinnati coach to leave after three seasons. Mark Dantonio went 18-17 from 2005-06 before Michigan State hired him away. Kelly posted a 34-6 record before leaving for Notre Dame at the end of a perfect regular season in 2009.

Cincinnati has made defensive line coach Steve Stripling its interim head coach for the Dec. 27 Belk Bowl against Duke in Charlotte, N.C., while it begins searching for Jones' successor.

"There is no timetable to make the hire," Babcock said. "Making the right hire is better than the quickest hire, but admittedly sooner is better if possible."

Jones' background as an assistant is entirely on offense, but one of his biggest challenges at Tennessee initially will be strengthening a defense that allowed the most points (35.7) and yards (471.4) per game of any SEC team this season. The Vols hadn't allowed that high a scoring average since 1893, when they gave up 42.7 points per game while playing a six-game schedule. They hadn't yielded that many yards per game since at least 1950, the earliest year Tennessee's sports information department has that statistic on file.

The makeup of Jones' first offense at Tennessee also remains uncertain, at least for now.

Starting quarterback Tyler Bray and star wide receivers Cordarrelle Patterson and Justin Hunter all are projected as first- or second-round draft picks if they choose to turn pro rather than returning to school for their senior seasons. Bray threw for 3,612 yards and 34 touchdowns this year to rank second on Tennessee's single-season list in both categories, behind Peyton Manning's 3,819 yards and 36 touchdown passes in 1997. Hunter caught 73 passes for 1,083 yards and nine touchdowns. Patterson gained a school-record 1,858 all-purpose yards.

Junior offensive tackle Ja'Wuan James also has been mentioned as a possible draft candidate.

Information from ESPN's Joe Schad, ESPN.com's Chris Low and The Associated Press was used in this report.

Why do I now get the sinking feeling that 15 days from now Paul Chryst will not be the head coach at the University of Pittsburgh after reading this?

Badgers football: Pitt coach Paul Chryst downplays Wisconsin buzz

7 hours ago • Associated Press(0) Comments

PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh football coach Paul Chryst understands why his name popped up as a candidate for the open job at the University of Wisconsin.

He's also through discussing the prospects of him returning to his hometown and alma mater to replace Bret Bielema, who bolted suddenly last week for Arkansas.

"I'm not going to talk too much about stuff that really," Chryst said Friday as the Panthers began preparations for next month's BBVA Compass Bowl against Ole Miss.

Chryst is from Madison, and both played and coached for the Badgers before taking over at Pitt last December. Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez, who put in a few calls to help Chryst land his first head coaching job, said it wouldn't be right for Chryst to leave after just one year.

That's just fine with Chryst, who endured an up-and-down season this fall as Pitt went 6-6 and earned its third straight trip to Birmingham, Ala., for the Compass Bowl. Chryst called the job speculation "a natural part of the profession" but downplayed the notion there was ever any real chance he would force the Panthers to search for their fifth head coach in two years.

"I think there's a lot more buzz surrounding (the Wisconsin job) than there was (with) myself and with the guys that we know," he said.

Still, Alvarez appears to be in no rush to make a hire. He's already announced he'll coach the Badgers in the Rose Bowl, buying him time to find the right candidate. On paper, Chryst would appear to be a natural fit.

Then again, so was Bielema, who was Alvarez's hand-picked successor. While the move to leave a program he led to three straight Rose Bowls stunned many — particularly Wisconsin alums — it didn't shock Chryst.

"I think that Bret's a smart guy and made an informed decision and I don't think stunned would be the right word," Chryst said. "I think it's good for him. He's probably very happy and that's good. There are opportunities. There's a new challenge."

And Chryst is content about the challenge that lies ahead at Pitt, which will move to the Atlantic Coast Conference next fall. The Panthers were an enigma this fall, beating Virginia Tech and Rutgers while nearly upsetting undefeated and top-ranked Notre Dame. Yet they also lost to Youngstown State and Connecticut and failed to build any real sense of momentum.

Still, the fact he is apparently out of the mix at Wisconsin drew a sigh of relief from a fan base and a roster that's going through a bit of coaching fatigue. Chryst received a standing ovation from the student section at a Pitt men's basketball game last week. He appreciated the gesture. He was just a little stunned by it.

"That was a little cheesy," Chryst said with a laugh before adding, "I haven't earned it."

Chryst isn't one to get comfortable in the spotlight anyway. He'd prefer to let that shine on his players, who remain the main reason he's sticking around.

"I feel fortunate to be here and I like what we're doing and I love doing it with the guys that we're doing it with," Chryst said. "That's a pretty good feeling."

That sense of loyalty is one of the reasons he's become so popular with his players. It's also why redshirt sophomore defensive end T.J. Clemmings — who is experimenting at offensive tackle heading into the bowl game — felt a little bit of angst when Wisconsin suddenly opened up.

"I was a little bit worried," Clemmings said. "This is my third year. I can't do the whole coaching thing again. I think Coach Chryst will hang around."

Clemmings just isn't certain. When asked if he's convinced Chryst will be on campus when spring drills begin, Clemmings just smiled.

"I hope so," Clemmings said. "I don't know what the man is going to do. I can't say, but I hope he's around."

Chryst would rather stop talking about a job he doesn't have and start talking about the one he does. Though this will be Pitt's third year spending New Year's Day in Alabama, he doesn't expect there to be a motivation issue considering the Panthers are playing a quickly improving team in Ole Miss (6-6).

Besides, if the Panthers are frustrated, they have no one to blame but themselves. A few more wins and their postseason prospects would have offered a different destination.

"This is where you should be," Chryst said. "This is what we earned. I think we've earned the right to go to a bowl. This is where it's slotted and we've got a chance to play a really good opponent I believe."

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